ITT: We are all Pokémon Trainers

Malie Garden

-The man pushes up the brim of his old Tyrolean, showing the shadow of a pointed chin, a thin nose, and high cheeks.-

Orlandeau: I must say, you are quite punctual.

-Orlandeau takes a white Bishop, which had already been taken earlier in the "game", and fiddles with it in his hand.-

Orlandeau: I hear tell that you are... dissatisfied.

Mt. Hokulani

Wanna: {It matters not! Your powers won't protect you from me!}

Ludmilla: ~Wanna bet?~

-The Nihilego is taken aback, before laughing proudly.-

Wanna: {HAHAHA! My name is known, even here! And yet you still foolishly stand before me?! MINIONS!}

-A platoon of Elgyem, numbering fifty at least, fall from the sky and line up in rank and file. They all are adorned with strange, fishbowl-like helmets.-

Wanna: {Laambo may have been a brute, but I, the great Wanna, have used my great charisma to bring these pathetic peons to heel!}

Elgyem: <ALL HAIL WANNA, MASTER OF ALL HE SURVEYS!>

-Ludmilla is somewhat taken aback by the sheer number of Pokemon.-

Ludmilla: That's... a lot.

Cu Sith: <I take one half, you take the other?>

Ludmilla: I don't think the math works out that way.

Malie Garden

Scarlette: Perhaps a bit.

-She looks over the board for a while, not actually analyzing any strategies, just the pattern of the pieces.-

Scarlette: I've had to go, ahem, separate ways with a number of people I once called friends.

Malie Garden

-The black pieces are all pushed back into horrible positions. The white pieces are pushing in, and the black king - the one Scarlette castled - is only a few moves away from check, even in its current position. However, the rook that Scarlette moved is now one move away from checkmating the white king, who is stuck behind a wall of pawns, bishops, and knights.-

Orlandeau: We all have, at some point or another. For some, it was a quiet departure - a splitting of interests, a lack of communiques. For others, it's an argument, a trial by fire that was not passed. And yet, the worst is the knife in the dark, even if you find it still sheathed. The poison on the needle, as it were.

-The man leans back and pushes his hat up further, letting the lamplight to reveal his eyes. They don't so much shine as spark, like snake eyes measuring up a meal or a predator.-

Orlandeau: We have all been there. And we don't intend on wallowing in it. Sound interesting?

Mt. Hokulani

-A desperate SOS sounds from the Hokulani Observatory, quickly pinging the emergency services.-

Ludmilla: Hey! You all need to snap out of it! I mean look at all of you! You think you can't beat him if you all turn on him now?!

Elgyem: <ALL HAIL WANNA, MASTER OF ALL HE SURVEYS!>

-She looks into their minds, and find a spider's web of what can only be described as indoctrination. She recoils in disgust.-

Wanna: {HAH! Minions, destroy her, then destroy this whole mountain!}

-The Elgyem all point their hands at Ludmilla before an eruption on their flank sends them flying.-

Cun Annwn: <I don't think so!>

Rio: <Yeah, eat it, xenos!>

Lotus the Ralts: <Everyone, we have to get to the observatory! An Ultra Beast will appear there!> D=

Malie Garden

Scarlette: I wouldn't have come so quickly if I weren't interested.

-She leans in.-

Scarlette: If I follow your metaphor correctly, take that knife and make it many knives. And you unsheathe a few of them, to find out some already have blood on them. This isn't the first time they've been used on someone. I'm just the newest one they've touched.

Malie Garden

-Orlandeau nods.-

Orlandeau: Indeed. But it's getting late, so let us cut to the chase.

-Orlandeau takes a box out of his pocket and places it on the board.-

Orlandeau: Our Director, our leader, is my brother-in-law.

-He keeps his gloved hand on the box for a time.-

Orlandeau: He, and his wife, my sister, were in Sootopolis during the Weather Crisis in Hoenn. When the battle started, my sister was thrown from her balcony, and tumbled down the inside of the crater.

-Despite his glove, there was no doubt that his nails were making divots in the box.-

Orlandeau: She was unconscious by the time she stopped on an outcropping. She was dead by the time anyone could reach her.

-Orlandeau takes a deep breath as he takes his hand off of the box.-

Orlandeau: I tell you this because you need context - why we formed, why we're here, and why we don't allow anyone, or anything, exemption. Vengeance fixes nothing - we already know that even Legendaries are replaceable. We, I, want to change the world so that justice can reach anyone - and vengeance becomes obsolete.

-The box waits, patiently.-

 Vast Poni Canyon, yesterday 

Legion: -Unleashes an Earthquake that manages to knock out the Scizor and damage the Kommo-o quite a bit, but the resulting retaliatory damage causes her school to break apart- <Tagg, I'm not sure how much more I can take!>

Lord of the Canyon: -Leaps forward and strikes Legion with a Sky Uppercut, knocking her out- <Next!>

Pici, you're up!

Pici: -Appears, and glares at the Kommo-o- <You don't scare me.>

Lord of the Canyon: <You're brought me a morsel, human? Not sure if the beak will go down well though.>

Oh, Pici will stuff you alright, a bit more than you can handle. Pici, it's time, just like in the Youtube videos!

-Does the Z-Move pose before flapping my arms like bird wings, crouching to the ground, and leaping up with my fist outstretched, Pici copying the movements-

Pici: <Eat this!>

-Flies high up through a hole in the cavern ceiling before diving back down, slamming into the Kommo-o with enough force to kick up enough dust to obscure everything else-

 Poni Island, today 

-Shivers even though Alola is hot in most places most of the time, but I'm not sure exactly why-

Over the Ocean

Sometime earlier, Colton sighed, knowing he had little to do. He summoned his Ride Pager, and while riding, he contemplated which 'mon would be best suited.

"Sean and Helmsman could handle it if Symbiote; Helmsman - alongside Amaterasu - could also deal with Absorption and Beauty; D.C. or Minister could deal with Lighting; Ammy and 9-Volt have Blade and Blaster; Sylveon, 9-Volt, and Lucario - no matter which - has Glutton." He thought aloud.

Soon, he would be at Hokulani.

edited 22nd Sep '17 7:28:02 PM by AbsentCoder

Malie Garden

-Scarlette pauses, then lifts up the box. She doesn't open it yet — she's not sure whether to do so now, or wait until behind a closed door. Instead, she just feels the weight of it, and tries to guess the contents.-

Scarlette: I met a crew of ghosts haunting a ship not long ago. The ship was wrecked because, according to them, Giratina opened a hole in the sky and sent out horrible beasts, which of course we now know as Ultra Beasts. Whether it's truly a phenomenon of Giratina or not, something let that happen.

-She gestures with her missing arm.-

Scarlette: And like them, I lost something due to Ultra Beasts coming from a wormhole, too. An arm, along with my memories, and whatever life I had before then. And then I lost more, because of the first people I thought I could trust to help me get those back.

-She puts the box back down.-

Scarlette: You told your story, so I've told mine. Now, what I'm wondering is, can I trust you? I can't get back my memories on my own, of course, but I've recently learned I do need to be careful who I can trust before I go following people recklessly.

-She idly sets up a few pawns around the border to keep her hand occupied.-

edited 22nd Sep '17 7:29:56 PM by BittersweetNSour

 Vast Poni Canyon, yesterday 

-The dust clears, and Pici stands triumphant over the unconscious body of the Lord of the Canyon-

So, that's it then.

-Walks over to the totem and grabs a Dragonium-Z-

Lord of the Canyon: -Suddenly wakes up-

Tyto: <Do you want to fight again?>

'Lord of the Canyon: <No, you are worthy.>

-Does a Z-Move dance that I assume corresponds to the Z-Crystal I just got, before jumping up into the higher levels of the cavern-

Okay guys, let's go further.

-And we walk out of the cavern-

edited 22nd Sep '17 9:24:47 PM by rmctagg09

Malie Garden

-Orlandeau nods.-

Orlandeau: Of course. Two way streets, and all that.

-He points at the box.-

Orlandeau: In that box is a flash drive. On that flash drive is a video file demonstrating the ends we will go to. I warn you, once you watch it, you will become one of two things: An informant, or a criminal. Maybe a heretic in the eyes of some. You can take it to the police, to the Tapu. We won't, can't stop you. Not in a public place like this. Or, you join us. We leave it to your discretion.

Malie City

-For the first time in the meeting, Scarlette shows signs of discomfort at the idea, starting with the word "criminal".-

Scarlette: ...I can't...

Cipher is worse.

-She takes a breath-

Scarlette: ...I can't be sure which of those I will be. I'll no doubt have a lot to think about.

Malie Garden

Orlandeau: Perfectly understandable. Believe it or not, I am not confident in my persuasive abilities enough to honestly have any hope of convincing you in just one conversation. I merely thought you would appreciate my candor.

-Orlandeau stands, demonstrating his dizzying two meter height when his shoulders are set.-

Orlandeau: If you are wondering if you will need an empty stomach before watching that file, do not worry. There is not a drop of blood nor a misplaced organ to be found. In fact, if I am to brag, I believe it is quite humane.

-His eyes have lost the edge that they had before. They more resemble the eyes of a doctor, a veterinarian, filled with grief, determination, and an injured compassion in equal measure.-

Orlandeau: I'm afraid business has come up that requires my and my colleagues' attention. Good night, Miss Scarlette.

-He walks away as every phone nearby starts vibrating and blaring an alarm.-

-Orlandeau keeps walking, his shoulder set and ready for a fight.-

A few miles from Hokulani

"I'M NOT READY!" Colton decided, alerting his ride, who stopped to look at him. "Just... set me a little bit down the mountain." He had noticed his new alert from his new chat. He stared at it, realizing that if the J-Team doesn't want to tangle with a UB, why should a late-teen intern?

He descended and dismounted. Nodding as they flew off, he looked over where he was placed: on the entirely wrong mountain - Lanakila.

Deciding that he had already bitten off more than he could chew - as well as noticing from a distance the UB was Symbiote - he decided to descend through the cavern.

He pulled up his sweater over his ears, somewhat aware of what Pokemon lived in these caves.

"I'm not crazy, I'm just a little unwell -

I know; right now you can't tell~" He sang to comfort himself.

edited 23rd Sep '17 8:49:51 AM by AbsentCoder

 Altar of the Sunne and Moone, last night 

-After we make it up the stairs, we find none other than Mina here, painting-

Mina: I was wondering when you guys would get here, but since you're here I guess you beat the trial.

-Shrugs-

Well, yeah.

Mina: I guess I'll just give you this now since you've passed it.

-Throws over a Fairyium-Z-

Take this as a token of our acquaintance and your victory. It's a Fairyium-Z, which you can use to get your Z on.

-Takes it-

Er, okay.

Mina: Oh, yeah. Ohhhh, yeah. Here, let me show you how to use it.

-Stops painting and does the Z-Move pose-

Yeah, so that's how.

The Aura feels weird around here, kinda like... Oh! So, Mina, do you know much about this place?

Mina: Well, it used to be an altar for the local Legendary Pokémon, but no one except people like me and Hapu and those on their Island Challenge come here anymore.

-Packing up her painting stuff-

...But it's kinda late so I'll be seeing you around then. Alola, alola!

-She then heads off-

...See you.

-Waits until I'm sure that Mina's out of sight before pulling out a Beast Ball-

Arundi, does this place seem familiar to you?

Arundi: {It does feel like home, but the energy feels really, really, faint...}

Hmm... Something must've happened here a while ago, not sure what it was though.

It's really faint, but some of the residual energy feels like... La. Not quite him, but similar to him...

edited 22nd Sep '17 9:02:35 PM by rmctagg09

Malie Garden

-Scarlette is lost in thought enough that she nearly jumps out of her skin when she gets the Ultra Beast alert. She instinctively reaches for her bag, then realizes Gus still has it, so she instead whistles him back over.-

Scarlette: Chess is over, we've got a problem coming!

Gus: <Right!>

-Gus swings and tosses the bag in Scarlette's direction, and she catches it before rooting around for her other Poke Balls.-

Scarlette: I'm in control. I'm in control of everything I do. We can take care of this!

-The group reappears in a flash here.-

Shaun: "I feel...wrong."

Wigglytuff: <It will...pass.>

Mina: "So, ready to help with the trial, man?"

Shaun: "I guess."

Mina: "Cool. You know Mallow's trial? I'm gonna need you to find three flowers of your choice. Then come back here."

Shaun: "It won't be that easy. But let's do this."

-He picks a direction and starts walking in it. Mina releases a Granbull, Klefki, and a Shiiontic.-

Mina: "Go on."

Contents being moved to a new post

edited 23rd Sep '17 9:35:17 AM by BittersweetNSour

Shaun: "We did it."

-He and Tsunami walk up to Mina, who's currently eating a family-sized bag of [Munchies] by herself.-

Mina: "Oh, here you go!"

-She tosses a Fairium-Z to Shaun, who doesn't even try to catch it.-

Shaun: "That's it?"

Mina: "Yeah, I don't know about the rest of the trial, and I want to paint this meadow. Consider that a gift and thank you."

-Shaun just shakes his head.-

Shaun: "Can I go back to the Canyon now?"

Mina: "Mmm? Wigglytuff can take you. Alola alola!"

-Shaun and Tsunami are grabbed by a Wigglytuff and disappear.-

And now back to our regularly scheduled interdimensional invasion.

Mt. Hokulani

-Wanna sputters in protest as the Helpful Hand Team (or is it Support Squad? Ready-for-action Rangers?) slide into place next to Ludmilla.-

Ludmilla: Cun!

Cun Annwn: <We're here to lend a Helping Hand!>

-Wanna growls in frustration.-

Wanna: {You insects will not stand in my way! I WILL SHOW YOU THE TRUE POWER OF GEAPHDARK!}

-He begins to glow.-

WANNA used TOXIC REVITILIZATION!

-All of the injured Elgyem stand up straight and snap back into ranks like Lego blocks. More Elgyem reinforcements fall from the sky, swelling their numbers to at least a hundred.-

Ludmilla: Uh oh.

edited 23rd Sep '17 6:36:14 AM by DuneTheWanderer

Lanakila Cavern

While his singing did calm him down somewhat, as well as getting his mind off of the cold, it didn't exactly help much that his headphones were starting to get too cold to even have around his neck, and he was basically acting as an incredibly echoey beacon to wild Pokemon.

In particular, a nearby Sneasel who was very aware of how off-key his singing sounded and wanted to get him to shut up.

Colton didn't quite know what happened. At first, he was listening to his music as normal. "The other night I dreamt of knives, continental drift divide, mountains sit in a line - hm?" He stopped as he felt his headphones gone. He heard some slight chuckling, a Sneasel holding his headphones and smirking.

He felt a Pokeball fidget. "No. She's mine." He said, cracking his knuckles as he approached her.

It was then that he remembered that their line was well-known for being incredibly agile. Semi-aware of how futile a chase would be, he relented and let Ammy out.

"Fire Spin," he sighed, somewhat dejectedly.

Knowing the context, and the described fact that her trainer wanted to snag his headphones back, she gestured for Colton to get a little closer as she surreptitiously primed a wisp on all of her tails.

And then a few more each. Once the Unovan was at a reasonable distance, she sent the wisps out and had them erupt into a proper Fire Spin, only big enough to encompass a Sneasel, a very angry human, and plenty of space for both to maneuver.

So about 90/10, really, her majority.

I oughta pry them outta her cold, unconscious claws, he thought. Then he paused, maybe I could have her on my team; an Ice-type would be a welcome addition.

And then he noticed there was an Ice Shard attack coming for him. "Whoop!"

Amaterasu sighed, looking at Colton try to get anything in on the speedy little bugger. <I understand, but...> she sighed behind her language barrier. <He can't do this. Meh, it's his funeral.>

Amaterasu watched her trainer's desperate attempts to get a hit on the Sneasel - who Amaterasu was now mentally referring to as "Rei"; just seemed fitting - with mild amusement.

As she was really only able to keep a hold on the headphones, her attacks were a bit weaker than they could have been. But that really didn't change much, because ice still stings like hell. Colton had taken to trying to intercept the attacks with individual strikes. But there was still a bit of a snag.

He wasn't a Rockruff anymore. The only moves he really - technically - did know were Force Palm and Headbutt. He was discounting Zen Headbutt because of her Dark-Type.

Eventually, though, he did get a bit of a vantage. The Sneasel, deciding to try to finish it, as well as knowing that humans were not suited to cold environments, tried to go for the sweater he was wearing.

Colton noticed that he had his hand on the Sneasel's arm before he noticed the headphones beaning him. He noticed that his head was colliding with hers before he realized that his sweater may have been torn.

He noticed the heat was putting a bit of a damper on the Sneasel before he noticed that the Sneasel was clutching her head while a Great Ball - thrown by his own hand - was flying towards her.

One part of him held his breath. Another part kicked himself.

Now I feel kinda guilty, he realized. 'Kay, I'll just take her to the center, get her two cents worth, and go from there. He decided as he picked up the Great Ball. Then it opened.

<That was kinda fun!> She chimed. Colton and Ammy, the latter having approached the Dark-type, looked at her with a bit of confusion. <You were growing to hate me, and I dunno why, but that felt good!>

Colton was unsure of how to respond to that. The shiny behind him sighed. <Do you want to travel with us?> She explained. <If yes, any nickname you'd prefer?>

She shrugged to both of them. <Sure, why not,> she agreed.

<Welcome to the team, Rei. We'll get to know each other in time.> Ammy nodded as she then returned.

"Oh, that's a good one!" Colton agreed. Upon seeing the Sneasel's confused look, he chuckled. "Yes, I can understand Pokemon. Trust me, it's a bit of a story..."

edited 23rd Sep '17 8:56:21 AM by AbsentCoder

Tapu Village Pokemon Center

-Rose is currently sitting at a table, resting her head on her hand, staring unfocused in roughly the direction of her phone in front of her. Nearby, Nora is pacing, floating back and forth on her tail and waiting for Rose to do literally anything.-

Nora: <Ughhh, you've been like this for days.>

-No response.-

Nora: <You're not dead, are you? Rigor mortis isn't setting in?>

-Rose gives a quiet sigh, confirming she is still indeed alive-

Nora: <...It's a step in the right direction, at least.>

-A shadow creeps up, approaching Rose and materializing-

Nora: <Wait a sec, I spoke too soon, that might be death coming to take you after all.>

Bedhead: Hold on, it's just me!

-Sure enough, the shadow dissipates to reveal a Mimikyu, who hoists himself up onto the table.-

Nora: <Not sure whether I should be relieved or let down, honestly.>

Bedhead: Never mind that, I have stuff I need to tell you!

-Rose still doesn't make a sound or move her head or anything, but she does give a tired glance up at Bedhead.-

Bedhead: Scarlette's... she's getting herself into some really sketchy stuff, I think. She saw these stories about Cipher, then said something about revenge, then she got a really suspicious text and went to meet some shady guy!

-For the first time today, Rose sits up more alertly-

Rose: ...Who? Who was it?

Bedhead: I don't know, I left the crew before they went to meet him! I just know that the poison's getting to her and she doesn't want to admit it!

-Rose stares blankly-

Bedhead: ...Please tell me she told you about the Nihilego poison.

Rose: She said you all had an encounter with a bunch of them, but she told me she got it all out of her system...

Bedhead: ...Oh no. Oh no oh no oh no.

-Rose sighs-

Rose: If what you're saying is true... well, I don't think we can take any sort of direct action, but we do need to tell someone. There's a lot of things we — and I — need to handle.

Nora: <Ugh, finally! I've been telling you that!>

-Rose picks up her phone-

-She hits send, and sighs.-

Rose: There's one more person I need to talk to first, but... I can't let anyone else know, for his safety.

Shaun: "So now we're gonna do this trial. You ready, Jamie?"

Jamie: <Uh-huh!>

-They enter.-

Shaun: "Someone's...watching us."

-A Jangmo-o pops down fron the ceiling.-

Jangmo-o: <You shall not pass!>

-Shaun rolls his eyes.-

Shaun: "Ice Beam."

-Jamie complies, all while another set of eyes watches...-

Heahea City

-PEFE!Every has escaped Ever and landed here-

Okay, just need to find a way to get back to HQ. Rotary won't teleport me anymore, but maybe I can find someone who will.

Poni Island

-Ever has returned to fishing-

Muninn: <You know, you're not going to get very far holding that rod one-handed.>

Ever: ...

Pleth: <No.>

Ever: Th—

Ever: Come on, he lobbed it right over the plate. I legally cannot refrain from pointing it out.

Pleth: -just stares-

Ever: ...Fine. Anyway, Muninn, I don't actually expect to catch anything. This is just a string stapled to a stick.

Muninn: <...Stapled?>

Ever: Yeah, I ran out of glue.

Muninn: <...> -sighs-

 Seafolk Village 

-Is eating Z-Noodles at the local restaurant-

At least nothing can probably go wrong today with noodles this good.

-And then I get a text that almost makes me lose my appetite-

Tapu Village Pokemon Center